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Upon furthur inspection of the building as D walked closer he noted that there
were large metal sheets, boarding the windows and all the entrances save what appeared
to be the main one. The work boarding this one up was badly done and seemed done in a
hurry. Wooden beams held this door shut instead of the metal slabs on all the others. As
D got closer to the door, close enough to reach out and touch the wood he heard a faint
crying from inside and the wind rustling past with a few dead leaves entangled in it’s
ghostly tendrils. Another sound became prominent as a few howls eminated from the
surrounding woods receiving low growls and snorts from inside the house. As D
unsheathed his sword a crashing sound was heard upstairs, of what seemed like a rather
large object against the metal window covering.
As he listened a little more closely, preparing to smash through the door, the
sobbing seemed to grow more hysterical and he could hear more things being thrown
around. Glass shattering reached D’s ears and a feminine shriek, a low growl and then a
thud and silence. Hesitating no longer D shattered through the weak wood with his body
and sword, and greeting him as he burst through was a werewolf to his left. Slashing at
him the beast left it’s chest wide open and in that split second as D rolled away he thrust
upward with his sword and pierced it’s heart. As he stood watching it die another raced
down the stairs from the upstairs, lunging at him. On it’s one paw was a torn piece of
cloth, a delicate lace pattern. Without warning before it could attack him D dispatched the
creature by slicing it’s stomach open, almost cutting the thing into two pieces. After
taking a quick look around to make sure there were no more monsters D proceeded up
the stairs and at the end of the hall he could hear sounds of movement from the last door
at the far end of the hall. The door was tightly shut and locked as D reached it though the
locks meant nothing to his shoulder as he rammed his way through it with sheer force.
Once inside he immediately noted that a vase went whooshing past his ear and smashed
behind him off the floor.
“You missed,” he said calmly, preparing to take another step forward as another
vase was thrown. This one however hit his hat and knocked it off his head, ruffling his
hair. Quickly catching his hat and replacing it he stepped over to the barely visable shape
huddling in the dark corner.
“That’s enough,”he said as he was halfway there. It was then that the figure shot
up to it’s feet and tried to race past him. As he quickly shot a hand out of his cloak he
caught ahold of the figure’s arm. It turned out that it was a young girl, in her early
twenties perhaps, with extremely pale skin and more angular features. Her eyes were a
deep purple and her thick hair a dark red, falling to her knees and maybe just a bit beyond.
Her hair was somewhat mussed up as is her outfit, a long velvet and lace gown that was
reminiscent of that which a lady of the court would wear. As he held tightly to her arm
she struggled to free herself, her strength quite possibly triple that of a normal human or
perhaps even more than that. Even with her strength though she couldn’t escape his
grasp and soon lessened in the attempt somewhat.
“Your captors are dead, you’re safe now,”he stated calmly as he looked down at
her.
“Safe until they order you to kill me or he tires of me,”she muttered looking at his
hand holding her, trying with all her might again to pull it off and get away. “At least
make it a little more fair to me..”
With his other hand D reached over and took a hold of her chin, bending her head
back a little to examine her neck.
“He bit you?”
As he said it D saw the two small puncture wounds in her neck that had pretty
much seemed to fade already.
“Yeah,”she replied,”Though I doubt it did much good...”
“Why is that?” D questioned her, still holding on to her chin, her eyes looking
away from his face.
“Guess that’s what I get for trying to help these people with their problems,”she
muttered to herself as he questioned her. Looking up at him and meeting his eyes she
explained.
“I tried to help this town. I'm a hunter, or I was... They needed the count taken
out, well that's what I'm good at, guess you could say it's an inborn ability... that I'm good
at what I do.. Well, when I failed, he decided he wanted to keep me as a pet, bride,
whatever,”She looked down at the ground,”Said he was going to turn me and that I'd have
to stay here til he was through with annihalating the village... This would be my prison...”
She gestured her hand around to the surrounding room and D asked,”Did he?”
“Completely turn me?” She queried. “No, I don’t think he could or would if he
really wanted to anyways.”
“The count is more powerful than you thought though,”D said, his voice never
changing tones or expressing emotion.
“Like I said, it's a natural ability to hunt vampires.... and I'm good at what I do..
It's inborn into me... I'm half and half, the happy misfit heh....,”she explained, shaking her
head then continuing,”When the lovely kind hearted villagers found out that not only was I
a dhampire but the next plaything for the count, well they decided that I should have no
way to live among them. They boarded the door up to keep me in here...”
“And you still wish to save them?” D asked in a calm voice. His face was still as
stoic as ever.
“Heh, not anymore...” she replied, a wry smile crossing her face,”Although I have
to admit. I still have to eliminate the count for my own sake so I guess no matter what I
end up helping them..”
D was quiet for a moment then asked,”Where does the count sleep?”
She shook her head,”I’m not sure. I couldn’t get to it, the monsters alerted him to
my presence before I could find it”
“Then we kill them first,”D said simply.
“I tried... Once I got through with the ones attacking me the count just came in
and beat me almost senseless,”she said as she shook her head a little,”Hmph.. Guess I'm a
failure as a hunter.”
“For a dhampire you resign yourself to your fate rather quickly,” he commented
quietly.
“Hmph,” she said, an annoyed tone creeping into her voice,”And I suppose you
know better huh?”
D was silent so she continued,”Mr. high and mighty, save the damsel in distress...
Save me til’ the villagers or the count gets ahold of me again. Just go ask the mayor what
he has planned for me once you take care of the count... go ask him...if I remember right
it's to be a blazing fire.”
“I don’t think that’s a concern anymore,”D said.
“At least til they see I'm not here anymore and walking out of here to freedom. No
matter how you look at it, I'm getting the bad end of this,”she explained as she looked up
at him.
“Then come with me to kill the count,” he suggested.
Running a hand through her somewhat knotted hair she simply answered,”I would
but I have no weapon. He has all my gear up there..”
“Then we will get it back.”
“Only thing he gave me in return was this,”she said as she gestured to the dress she
wore. It was the standard for nobility or royalty, lace and velvet, and accented her figure.
“That is the least of your problems, I think,”D commented, still showing no
emotion in what he said.
“If I knew where he was keeping it that wouldn't be such a problem. His castle is
huge....my stuff could be anywhere...”
Her voice trailed off and D spoke up after remaining silent for a moment,”Then we
will find it.”
“Thanks for the help, I appreciate the concern but I am not going back there.. I
can't beat him, and I am in no condition to try,”she stated simply as she got her arm free
from his grasp,”Let's just say the meals when I get them aren't the healthiest.”
“Oh and sorry for attacking you with the vases,”she said as she turned to leave.
Turning to look at her as she left D simply said,”Then where will you go. The
count or the villagers will have you in a matter of hours if you walk out that door alone.”
“You're probably right there but I'm going. If I can get far enough away I'll be
fine,”she explained, not turning to face him,”I just have to get to the next town over at
least.”
“You won’t make it alone.”
“Well that’s my best option right now,”she said, turning to look at him then
turning again as she walked out of the door.
Shaking his head D said to her retreating form,”Let me help you. If you walk out
that door, you'll be killed.”
Turning and coming back to the doorway she just looked at him, then spoke.
“Why on the whole earth would you want to help me? You barely know me, I've
just attacked you without a reason other than I thought you were one of those werewolves
and if you help me, you're getting both the count and the village after you too.”
“Because I know what it means to be dhampire,”he said simply.
“Then you.....” she started, her voice trailing off.
D stood silently as she tilted her head, to look up at him.
“I see...” she said quietly, D standing rigid, his eyes avoiding her own.
“Forgive my earlier comment then... t'was rude of me,”she said as she walked over
to him.
D was silent then asked,“So will you come with me to defeat the count?”
Before he could finish asking the question though she was kneeling before him as a
gesture of apology,”You are the better of the two of us...”
“Stand.”
Looking up at him she said,”I won't be of much help,”standing as she finished.
Shaking his head he replied,”You are a hunter. We will defeat the count.”
“You really believe that don't you?” She asked, her voice having a sort of hopeful
ring to it.
“I know it.”
Nodding she spoke up again,”Yes, perhaps we can... But I still won't be of much
help. I'm too weak at this point...”
“Then we will wait,”he stated.
“...to be that good in a fight,”she said and as she finished she heard a noise from
downstairs. It sounded like a couple pairs of feet walking into the old house. Hushed
voices were also heard by both her and D.
“Do you think he found the vampire's bitch?” The one asked, a deep distinctively
male voice.
“This way, quickly,”D said as the other voice spoke up from downstairs, the feet
coming closer to the bottom of the stairs.
“Hopefully not.... I fear he might have though...” The second voice, more of a
tenor said.
Looking at D she said quietly yet sarcastically,”Great... they're back....”
Suddenly D sliced through the ceiling with his sword, sending old plaster and
rubble down and causing the air to become dusty. The girl just looked up at it and
commented quietly,”Interesting escape plan...”
Saying nothing in reply they were suddenly greeted by the sound of hurried
footsteps and shouts coming up the stairs towards the room they were in.
Trying to jump up to the hole but missing due to the heavy dress inhibiting her
movements she complained quietly,”I can't get up there.”
Grabbing a nearby lamp D threw it onto the bed and curtains, catching them on fire
to distract the men as they charged forward towards the room. Picking up her slight
weight he jumped up through the hole in the room and landed on the edge of the hole.
Standing there for a moment they just looked down through the hole into the room.
Blushing slightly as she realized how close she was to him she managed to whisper
a simple,”Thanks...”
Below them through the hole the two men were visable. They shouted for them to
stop and for D to return the vampire's whore to them as they drew two pistols and began
firing up at D and the girl. Holding her close to him he sprinted across the rooftops,
moving quickly to his horse and on the way across the rooves she wrapped her arms
around him, holding on tightly. With a leap, then a thud, they landed on his horse, and
rode off into the woods. Holding on to him, she hid her face in his cloak, pressing her
cheek to his body to avoid the wind as they rode.